Federal Emergency

Chemical suits, fire trucks and other signs of an emergency are expected Tuesday at the Port of Palm Beach during a hazardous material drill. Local, state and federal emergency responders will be part of the three-day, regional response to a fake hazmat incident at the port. Cruise ship traffic and cargo shipping is not supposed to be affected by the drill and the public should not be alarmed if they see what looks like an emergency in progress, county officials said.

TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Rick Scott said Thursday that there are no plans to cancel the Republican National Convention, despite the threat of Tropical Storm Isaac. "Right now, there's not an anticipation that there will be a cancellation," Scott told reporters. In Tampa, the chief executive officer of the convention also put out a statement saying that staff was planning to go ahead as planned. "The Republican National Convention and the Republican National Committee, working in consultation with the Romney/Ryan campaign, are in regular contact with the National Weather Service, Gov. Scott and local emergency officials in an effort to track and understand the potential impact of the storm," said William Harris.

St. Lucie County school officials hope a slow response from state and federal emergency agencies won't force them to dip into reserves to pay for Hurricane Frances repairs. But if other natural disasters are any indicator, the check is far from in the mail. The district suffered $13 million in damage from Frances. Last week the district received $300,000 in insurance payments, and hopes federal emergency funds eventually will cover 90 percent of the damage and that the state will pick up the remaining 10 percent.

Chemical suits, fire trucks and other signs of an emergency are expected Tuesday at the Port of Palm Beach during a hazardous material drill. Local, state and federal emergency responders will be part of the three-day, regional response to a fake hazmat incident at the port. Cruise ship traffic and cargo shipping is not supposed to be affected by the drill and the public should not be alarmed if they see what looks like an emergency in progress, county officials said.

Dear Applicant: Thank you for your interest in joining the Federal Emergency Management Agency. As you know, this is a challenging time for our agency. Hurricane Katrina and the news media have created a difficult working environment. We are looking for the very best people to perform the vital work of rebuilding the Gulf region and preparing for future disasters and terror attacks. You can help us by filling out the following aptitude test. (Note: If you have executive experience in Bush-Cheney election campaigns, or were a college roommate of an executive in a Bush-Cheney campaign, you may skip the test.

TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Rick Scott said Thursday that there are no plans to cancel the Republican National Convention, despite the threat of Tropical Storm Isaac. "Right now, there's not an anticipation that there will be a cancellation," Scott told reporters. In Tampa, the chief executive officer of the convention also put out a statement saying that staff was planning to go ahead as planned. "The Republican National Convention and the Republican National Committee, working in consultation with the Romney/Ryan campaign, are in regular contact with the National Weather Service, Gov. Scott and local emergency officials in an effort to track and understand the potential impact of the storm," said William Harris.

As Florida battens down, state and federal officials are getting ready to rush to the rescue. There are already 230 trucks of ice and 200-plus trucks filled with water ready to roll. Generators that helped victims of Hurricane Charley will be redirected to aid those left powerless by Hurricane Frances. Federal emergency officials began earlier this week stockpiling supplies at places like Thomasville, Ga., 30 miles north of Tallahassee, and Fort Bragg, N.C. National Guard units in Texas are sending Chinook helicopters while Blackhawks are coming from South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi.

Straining to meet President Bush's mid-October deadline to clear out shelters, the federal government has moved hundreds of thousands of evacuees from Hurricane Katrina into hotel rooms at a cost of about $11 million a night, a strategy local officials and some members of Congress criticize as incoherent and wasteful. The number in hotels has grown by 60 percent in the past two weeks as some shelters closed, reaching almost 600,000 as of Tuesday. Even so, relief officials say they cannot meet the deadline, as more than 22,000 were still in shelters in 14 states on Wednesday.

Yes, payments for both emergency unemployment compensation (EUC) and extended benefits (EB) began last week. Under the latest extension, as of December 25, 2010, more than $45 million on nearly 62,000 claims has been paid, according to Florida's Agency for Workforce Innovation. Florida residents who had a remaining EUC balance on their claim were automatically rolled into the next tier of benefits and were able to begin claiming weeks of unemployment on Wednesday, Dec. 22. Individuals who have already established an EB claim and had a remaining balance were able to certify for benefits beginning Thursday, Dec. 23. The agency mailed applications to customers who exhausted all EUC entitlements and have not established an EB claim.

Federated Department Store`s "long, strange trip" is over. The long, strange trip, as Bankruptcy Court Judge J. Vincent Aug Jr. recently called the department store chain`s journey through Chapter 11, may have started in South Florida but it ended on Tuesday as Federated emerged from Chapter 11 in bankruptcy court in Cincinnati. By several accounts, Canadian real estate developer Robert Campeau fell in love with Federated at the Bloomingdale`s store at the Town Center mall. Campeau had already rocketed out of obscurity in 1986 with his leveraged buyout of Allied Stores.

Yes, payments for both emergency unemployment compensation (EUC) and extended benefits (EB) began last week. Under the latest extension, as of December 25, 2010, more than $45 million on nearly 62,000 claims has been paid, according to Florida's Agency for Workforce Innovation. Florida residents who had a remaining EUC balance on their claim were automatically rolled into the next tier of benefits and were able to begin claiming weeks of unemployment on Wednesday, Dec. 22. Individuals who have already established an EB claim and had a remaining balance were able to certify for benefits beginning Thursday, Dec. 23. The agency mailed applications to customers who exhausted all EUC entitlements and have not established an EB claim.

Looking to track the latest product recall? Need to know what items are allowed onto airlines — and not — for your next trip? And what's the best way to monitor local and national missing child reports? A slew of free government-sponsored smart phone and mobile applications are designed to keep you safe and informed on consumer issues, especially when you're on the go. Some are tailored for specific iPhone and Android phones, while many others may be used on any Web-enabled mobile device.

Straining to meet President Bush's mid-October deadline to clear out shelters, the federal government has moved hundreds of thousands of evacuees from Hurricane Katrina into hotel rooms at a cost of about $11 million a night, a strategy local officials and some members of Congress criticize as incoherent and wasteful. The number in hotels has grown by 60 percent in the past two weeks as some shelters closed, reaching almost 600,000 as of Tuesday. Even so, relief officials say they cannot meet the deadline, as more than 22,000 were still in shelters in 14 states on Wednesday.

Dear Applicant: Thank you for your interest in joining the Federal Emergency Management Agency. As you know, this is a challenging time for our agency. Hurricane Katrina and the news media have created a difficult working environment. We are looking for the very best people to perform the vital work of rebuilding the Gulf region and preparing for future disasters and terror attacks. You can help us by filling out the following aptitude test. (Note: If you have executive experience in Bush-Cheney election campaigns, or were a college roommate of an executive in a Bush-Cheney campaign, you may skip the test.

St. Lucie County school officials hope a slow response from state and federal emergency agencies won't force them to dip into reserves to pay for Hurricane Frances repairs. But if other natural disasters are any indicator, the check is far from in the mail. The district suffered $13 million in damage from Frances. Last week the district received $300,000 in insurance payments, and hopes federal emergency funds eventually will cover 90 percent of the damage and that the state will pick up the remaining 10 percent.

As Florida battens down, state and federal officials are getting ready to rush to the rescue. There are already 230 trucks of ice and 200-plus trucks filled with water ready to roll. Generators that helped victims of Hurricane Charley will be redirected to aid those left powerless by Hurricane Frances. Federal emergency officials began earlier this week stockpiling supplies at places like Thomasville, Ga., 30 miles north of Tallahassee, and Fort Bragg, N.C. National Guard units in Texas are sending Chinook helicopters while Blackhawks are coming from South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi.

Looking to track the latest product recall? Need to know what items are allowed onto airlines — and not — for your next trip? And what's the best way to monitor local and national missing child reports? A slew of free government-sponsored smart phone and mobile applications are designed to keep you safe and informed on consumer issues, especially when you're on the go. Some are tailored for specific iPhone and Android phones, while many others may be used on any Web-enabled mobile device.

Federated Department Store`s "long, strange trip" is over. The long, strange trip, as Bankruptcy Court Judge J. Vincent Aug Jr. recently called the department store chain`s journey through Chapter 11, may have started in South Florida but it ended on Tuesday as Federated emerged from Chapter 11 in bankruptcy court in Cincinnati. By several accounts, Canadian real estate developer Robert Campeau fell in love with Federated at the Bloomingdale`s store at the Town Center mall. Campeau had already rocketed out of obscurity in 1986 with his leveraged buyout of Allied Stores.